The most impressive caves in the Czech Republic

The Bozkov Dolomite Caves

Pirate’s Corridor, the spectacularly illuminated Hell, Robber’s Cave or the stalactite formations of shapes of colors named White Mouse, Elephant Ears, Rococo Dolls or Gingerbread Cottage – you can see all that on a visit to the longest dolomite cave in the Czech Republic.

The dolomite caves in Bozkov are a favourite tourist destination and belong among the most frequently visited places in Český Ráj. Because of the length of over 1,000 metres, it is the largest known cave system in northeastern Bohemia. The caves are characterized by abundant silica banks, ledges and natural bars, with rich stalactite and stalagmite decorations. The top part of the tour is water areas comprising little lakes, with the largest underground lake in Bohemia with limpid blue-and-green water at the very end.

The Zbrašov Aragonite Caves

The Zbrašov aragonite cave lies in a picturesque valley of the Bečva river in the spa-town Teplice nad Bečvou. This unique cave system of European importance has been created by the simultaneous action of atmospheric water and warm mineral waters rising from great depths through the limestone. It is the warmest cave in the Czech Republic, with year-round constant temperature of 14 ° C. Discovered in 1912, it has been open to the public since 1926.

The unique decorations of the caves contain aragonite, raft stalagmites and sinter spheric coating, reminding of doughnuts. The bottom levels of the caves are parmanently filled with carbon dioxide. The caves are the warmest underground areas of the Czech Republic, with permanent temperature of 14°C, which remains stable throughout the year. The system was discovered in 1912 and made accessible to the public in 1926. Not far from the caves there is the deepest abyss of the Czech Republic called „Hranice Abyss“. Its dry section, which can be seen, is -69.5 m deep. The depth of the water-filled section was verified by the latest measurement in 2016 to be another -404 m. The total depth, as measured so far, is -473.5 m, but the bottom has not been reached yet. The Hranice Abyss is now also the deepest abyss in the world. You will reach this caves for 321 km by any our car from Prague.

The Na Špičáku Cave

A large number of inscriptions on the walls and the ceilings of the cave document that the cave has been visited since the Middle Ages (the oldest inscription is dated from the year 1564). Visitors walk through the unique heart-shaped tunnels. The cave is also accessible for the handicapped people.

The Cave „Na Špičáku“ was mentioned for the first time in written documents in 1430 by Anthonius Wale. In this way it is the oldest cave in the central Europe supported by the written evidence. The cave served people as a hiding place and the numerous epigraphic inscriptions on the walls give us testimony about it. (The oldest epigraph comes from 1519). In the period of 1884 –1885 the German Mountain Club opened the cave to the public. However, the conditions were primitive at that time. Since 1955 the cave has been open to the public in the way and form as we can see it today. The underground maze of corridors and fissures is more than 400 meters long and it was created in the Devonian marble (the marine sediments are old 350 - 380 milion years). The development of the karst spaces was prominently influenced by the water of a melted glacier. This water gave the cave the final form and created the typical heart shaped profile of the corridors. The visit route is 230 meters long and it is barrier-free.

This is 260 km from Prague by car.

The Punkva Cave

The Punkva Caves can be found in Pustý Žleb, about 1 km from the Skalní mlýn information centre. The caves were discovered in stages in the years 1909–1933 by Professor Absolon’s group of speleologists. The visitors walk through mighty underground spaces and corridors decorated with stalactites and stalagmites, as far as the bottom of the world-famous Macocha (=Step Mother) abyss. The abyss is 138,7 m deep, with fascinating ground dimensions: 174 by 76 m.

History of exploration starts in 1723 by the first described visit of the bottom of Macocha Abyss. It was Lazar Schopper who was the first dated person in here. In 1909, it was Karel Absolon (1887-1960) and his team who got into new corridors from Pustý žleb to the bottom of Macocha Abbys via Dry Walk. It was on 31st January 1914. In 1930’s Vodní cesta was discovered – cavers used this way to get from seepage of River Punkva through water domes to Macocha Abyss. First part called Suchá cesta was opened to public in 1910. In 1933, Mokrá Cesta was opened. The road is 240 km from Prague.

The Sloup-Šošůvka Caves

Sloup-Šošůvka Caves are the largest accessible caves in the Czech Republic. Apart from the corridors and domes with stalactites and stalgmites the visitors can have a look at the abysses and the world-famous archeological locality Kůlna.

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